What is artificial intelligence?

Before understanding what is artificial intelligence we should understand first what is intelligence?
If we go by the oxford meaning intelligence is the ability of learning and getting knowledge.

Now in search of the meaning of artificial intelligence we will move a little off road into the problem solving concepts. Every problem has two types of solution algorithmic and heuristic solutions. If a set of numbers is given and we have to find the largest of them, anyone can tell the answer at an instant. But if it is asked how they got to the answer? Many of us will be like "I just know it". But it is not that simple, computers can only solve those problems that have a step by step procedure for its solution. These are called algorithmic solutions.

On the other hand if someone is asked to throw a ball to his friend, its a cake walk for him/her. But its not a cake walk for a computer accomplishing this task because it does not have any fixed steps.These are called heuristic solutions.

So till date most of the algorithmic solutions are processed by computers and all the heuristic problems are processed by human beings.

So Artificial intelligence is the branch of computer science that deals with the study of computers solving heuristic solutions. In simple words "making the computers think in literal sense". So next time you are on a wrong foot beware of your gadgets......